And as they went, behold, some of the watch went into the city, and brought word to the chief priests of all that had taken place.
The women were still on their way to tell the disciples the tomb was empty, but another group carried the same news into Jerusalem with a very different purpose. What happens when people get solid evidence they have already decided not to accept?
The verse sets two journeys side by side — the women going to the disciples, the soldiers going to the priests. One writer traces how the same event landed on three different sets of people.
In a few words, this Gospel shows how Jesus' resurrection, and what followed it, touched three groups — the women, the soldiers, and the Jews. For the women, it is comfort and grace; they are the messengers of the good news to the disciples. The soldiers are alarmed and become like dead men. That is what happens when God shows His power and steps in... With the Jews it is deliberate hardness of heart. They try to destroy the testimony they could not deny — testimony made certain by the guard they had posted themselves.
These men skipped the Roman governor and went straight to the religious leaders. One writer finds that odd, and asks why.
The guards had recovered enough from their terrible fright, and some of them hurry back to the city. Something must have happened. Why else would they leave their important post and go back to the city to report? It is also strange that they went to the chief priests first and not to the Roman governor. That was not the normal thing to do. So these soldiers must have thought their report mattered more to the chief priests than to Pilate. Perhaps the priests had told the guard this: if anything happened at the tomb and He came out, come to us first.
The Lord's enemies had posted this guard themselves. That turns their report into evidence no one can call biased.
It is certain that the Jews, above all the religious leaders, led the way in evil and in opposition to God before Christ's death (Matt. 26-27), while He lay in the grave (Matt. 27:62-66), and after He rose again (Matt. 28:11-15). Yet unbelief is as weak against God as faith is strong with Him. Their own guard became the clearest witness of the resurrection — without meaning to, and without anyone suspecting it. The alarm of the soldiers, set beside the doubts of His own disciples, was a powerful testimony!
The leaders gathered, and the guards laid out the facts. What follows shows what the meeting was actually for.
The elders gather; the guards report the facts; and the elders decide what to do. Hostility to the Lord was the settled source of all. They did not debate whether to accept the clear testimony of the Lord's resurrection. These unhappy leaders of the people debated only how to get rid of it. The evidence was clear, and it came from their own witnesses. So they turn to bribery, paying the soldiers to tell a different story.
The leaders paid the soldiers for a different explanation. Its own details defeat it.
A true story holds together, and you can examine it in close detail. But this tale is far from convincing. If ALL the guard were asleep, how could they know that the disciples had stolen the body? If, further, the body was stolen, how could sleeping men know what had become of it? Was the WHOLE guard likely to be asleep on the morning of the third day, the very day our Lord had said He would rise from the dead? They knew that sleeping at their post could cost them their lives.
The men who invented the lie never disputed the empty tomb — only its cause. That leaves the historical record in a strong position.
They told the truth to the priests. Then the priests bribed them and coached them, and they lied to the people... No fact of history has better human evidence behind it than the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. So when anyone denies this fact — an open unbeliever, or someone who claims to be religious — he also throws away the value of the evidence for every other fact of the past.
- Report. Some of the guard left their post and carried news of the empty tomb into the city. They would not have moved unless something undeniable had happened.
- Witness. The very men hired to prevent the resurrection story became its clearest and least suspected witnesses.
- Refusal. The assembled leaders never debated whether the report was true; they only debated how to be rid of it.
- Bribe. The leaders paid the guards to tell a different story — money spent to bury a truth they could not deny.
- Result. Two errands left that tomb. One carried good news. The other carried a paid-for lie that collapses under the first question.
And having assembled with the elders, and having taken counsel, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
Soldiers sent to guard a sealed tomb came back with a report no one could deny. The men who heard it never asked whether it was true — they asked what it would cost to bury it.
This scene fits a pattern that runs from the first page of Matthew to the last:
This is the only Gospel that tells us of Jewish hostility pursuing the Lord beyond the cross. Matthew, and Matthew only, tells us of the sealing of the stone and the setting of the watch at the door of the tomb… No kindness, though heaped on their heads again and again, reduces it, and death does not quiet it. That hostility opens his Gospel, in Herod's attempt on the young Child's life. The same hostility now closes it, at the tomb of their martyred Messiah.
The leaders met and took counsel. The striking thing is what they discussed — and what they did not:
Hostility to the Lord was the settled source of it all. They never discussed whether to accept the clear testimony of the Lord's resurrection. The only thing these unhappy leaders of the people discussed was how to get rid of it. The evidence was clear — clear from their own witnesses. So they turn to bribery to get the soldiers to give a different account of the matter.
Set the week's two payments side by side.
The false religious leaders of their day — the priests — were utterly blinded by the devil. They assembled together with the elders and took counsel. Those who bribed a treacherous disciple with "thirty pieces of silver" to put Christ to death now gave "large money" to deny the truth of His resurrection. Such is man, such is the world; and, solemn to say, such is its highest and proudest form. Such it was then: is the moral character of it changed now?
(Where older translations read "large money," the ESV has "a sufficient sum of money.")
Notice who the soldiers went to first with their news.
Then it is strange that they went to the chief priests first and not to the Roman governor. This was indeed very irregular. From this we must conclude that these soldiers thought their report mattered more for the chief priests to know than for Pilate… They bring their report, and this was nothing less than a witness to the resurrection and to the empty tomb. The enemies were the first witnesses of His triumph.
The tale bought that morning cannot survive plain questions.
A true story will hang together, and can stand close examination. But this tale is far from convincing. If ALL the guard were asleep, how could they know that the disciples had stolen the body? If the body was stolen, how could sleeping men know what had become of it? Was ALL the guard likely to be asleep on the morning of the third day, the day our Lord had said He would rise from the dead? They knew that sleeping at their posts risked the death penalty.
There is also what the leaders never even tried:
If the disciples had removed the body, why did the chief priests settle for bribing the soldiers to tell a lie that put them at great risk? Why not search by every possible means for the body? Suppose they could have got hold of the body and shown it in public. What convincing proof that would have been that there was no resurrection! Where was the body? The body was never produced. Why? Because there was no dead body, but a living risen Christ.
Money alone was not enough. The story the priests bought made the soldiers confess to a crime that carried death.
It was a death offence for a soldier to sleep on guard duty. But the governor had unjustly handed Jesus over to their will. He would not hesitate at a small thing like sparing the guilty soldiers, having already put himself under the power of the chief priests by that unrighteous act.
Yet the payment failed. Within a few months the lie could no longer bear any weight:
These same priests had stooped to a large act of bribery with the soldiers assigned to watch the grave. They had also committed themselves to an even more expensive act of bribery with the Governor, if necessary, to twist their witness to His resurrection. Yet when only a few months had passed, the lie they had sent on its way had clearly proved too fragile to rely on. They dared not take their stand on it.
- Evidence — Hostile witnesses brought the first report of the empty tomb. The enemies of Christ carried the news of His triumph.
- Counsel — The leaders never debated whether the report was true. Their entire discussion was how to dispose of it.
- Price — Thirty pieces of silver bought His death. They paid a far larger sum to deny His rising. The size of the bribe measures the strength of the fact.
- Cover — Sleeping on guard carried the death penalty. So the money came with a promise to handle Pilate, a governor already in the priests' power through his own unjust act.
- Collapse — The story could not answer simple questions. No body was ever produced. Within months even its authors would not stand behind it.
saying, Say that his disciples coming by night stole him [while] we [were] sleeping.
The soldiers who guarded the tomb have just reported to the chief priests. Instead of facing what happened, the priests pay the men to repeat a story of the priests' own making.
The priests do not draft a careful cover story. They hand the guards a sentence that collapses under its own weight. Ask the plain questions and it falls apart.
A true story will hang together, and can be closely examined. But this tale is far from convincing. If ALL the guard were asleep, how could they know that the disciples had stolen the body? If the body really was stolen, how could sleeping men know what had become of it? Was ALL the guard likely to be asleep on the morning of the third day? Our Lord had said He would rise from the dead. Above all, they knew that sleeping at their posts risked the death penalty. Of course they could not deny that the stone was rolled away and the tomb was empty. So some story had to be told, to escape admitting that our Lord had risen from the dead.
Where they told the lie makes it worse. The temple curtain had just torn in two, and the tomb stood open.
The high priest invented a lie, in the face of a torn veil; the Roman soldiers agreed to that lie, in the face of an opened tomb.
Money moves the whole scene. The priests paid far more to bury the resurrection than they had paid to secure the crucifixion.
Money, and the love of it, lay at the root of this particular evil. They bribed the soldiers, and we may suppose they won over the governor the same way. Anything to stop the truth about the resurrection coming out! They realised how it would wreck their cause and establish His. They gave only thirty silver coins to Judas to bring about His death. But they gave a large sum to the soldiers, trying to suppress the fact of His resurrection.
The lie was dangerous for the men told to repeat it. Sleeping on duty could cost a soldier his life. But the governor was in no position to refuse the priests.
It was a capital offence for a soldier to sleep on guard. But the governor had unjustly handed Jesus over to their will. He would not hesitate at such a small thing as sparing the guilty soldiers. By that unrighteous act he had already put himself under the power of the chief priests. So this falsehood is reported among the Jews, even to our own times.
The priests had posted the guard to stop the very theft they now paid the men to report. The soldiers' fear and their report had already given the case away.
Unbelief is, after all, as weak against God as faith is mighty with Him and by Him. Their own guard became the clearest witness of the resurrection, and the least suspected. They never meant to be. What a testimony was the alarm of the soldiers, added to the doubts of His own disciples! It was more than unbelief now; it was a deliberate, wilful lie.
Suppose the disciples had taken the body. There was then a far simpler way to end the matter than paying soldiers to risk execution.
And if the disciples had removed the body, why did the chief priests settle for bribing the soldiers to tell a lie that put them at great risk? Why did they not search by every possible means to find the body? Suppose they could have laid hold of the body and shown it to everyone. What convincing proof that would have been that there was no resurrection. That would have settled the matter once and for all. Where was the body? The body was never produced. Why? Because there was no dead body, but a living, risen Christ.
The story kept spreading. Yet the men who paid for it soon stopped using it themselves.
These same priests had stooped to a large act of bribery with the soldiers set to watch the grave. They had also committed themselves to an even more expensive bribe with the governor, if needed. All this was to twist their witness to His resurrection. Yet it is clear that, after only a few months, the lie they had launched proved too fragile to rely on. They dared not take their stand on it.
- Bribe. The priests paid a small sum to have Christ killed and a large sum to have His rising denied. The cover-up cost more than the crucifixion.
- Blunder. Sleeping men cannot report what happened while they slept. One plain question, and the story falls apart.
- Backfire. The priests posted the guard to stop a theft. That guard became the least suspected witness to the resurrection.
- Body. One body on display would have settled the matter for good. They never produced it, because there was none to produce.
- Bankruptcy. Within months the men who paid for the lie would not stand on it publicly — evidence outlasts money.
And if this should come to the hearing of the governor, *we* will persuade him, and save *you* from all anxiety.
The chief priests have just paid the guard to say the body was stolen while they slept. Now they add a promise: if word reaches Pilate, they will handle him. This one sentence shows how much the nation's leaders would spend, and risk, to bury the news of the resurrection.
The priests promise to "satisfy" the governor. They do not say how. But they had just shown their method with the guard.
Money and the love of it lay at the root of this particular evil. They bribed the soldiers, and we should suppose that they would win over the governor the same way. Anything to stop the truth as to the resurrection coming out! They realised how it would wreck their cause while establishing His. The devil, who moved them, realised it far more clearly than they did. They gave only thirty silver coins to Judas to bring about His death. But they gave large money to the soldiers, trying to suppress the fact of His resurrection.
Why would soldiers need to be kept "out of trouble"? Roman military law is one reason. Pilate's own position is another.
The council had condemned the Lord to death. Now it does not hesitate to bribe the Roman guard to say His disciples came and stole Him away. It was a death offence for a soldier to sleep on guard. But the governor had unjustly handed Jesus over to their will. He would not hesitate at a small thing like sparing the guilty soldiers. By that unrighteous act he had already put himself under the power of the chief priests.
The nation's religious leaders backed this lie. They sold it to men who had just seen an angel.
The chief priests knew the law. If a guard slept at his post, the punishment was death. For this reason they promised that they would speak to the governor if he heard that they were sleeping. Such was the sense of honour among these highly religious men! The guards forgot their earlier fear of the angel. Greed for money moved them to tell a shameless lie. So the people still accepted this falsehood at the time Matthew wrote. Yet any honest person could have seen through the whole web of lies. Still, if a man likes a lie he will gladly accept it without question.
The plan backfired. The only people the priests could pay were the people who had been there.
They had bribed a treacherous disciple with "thirty pieces of silver" to put Christ to death. Now they gave "large money" to deny the truth of His resurrection. Such is man, such is the world; and, solemn to say, such is the world at its highest and proudest... But unbelief is as weak against God as faith is mighty with Him and by Him. Their own guard became the clearest witness of the resurrection — the witness no one suspected, and one that never meant to testify. The alarm of the soldiers, added to the doubts of His own disciples — what a testimony that was!
The priests were ready to spend more on Pilate than they had spent on the guard. Yet within months the same men would not repeat their own account in public.
These same Sadducean priests had stooped to a big act of bribery with the soldiers appointed to watch the grave. They had also committed themselves to an even more expensive bribe, if necessary, with the Governor. Their aim was to twist the soldiers' witness to His resurrection. Yet only a few months later, the lie they had launched proved too fragile to rely on. They dared not take their stand on it.
Priests and soldiers had both seen God act. Neither group changed.
The tearing of the veil leaves the scribes and priests as hardened and as wicked as ever. The opening of the tomb leaves the soldiers who guarded it in the same state it found them in. The one group gives money, and the other takes it, to spread a lie in the face of these awful and astounding facts. These are solemn doings of the hand of God. Some hearts refuse to fear, to repent, to soften at such a call. Surely we may say that such a heart stands convicted before us as ruined beyond recovery.
- Bought. Thirty pieces of silver bought His death. "Large money" tried to bury His resurrection. The governor would have cost more still.
- Shielded. Sleeping on guard could cost a soldier his life. So the priests offered cover from a governor already in their power.
- Backfired. The men the priests paid had seen it all. Their own guard became the last witness anyone would suspect.
- Collapsed. Within months the priests would not stand publicly on the story they had paid for.
- Exposed. A torn veil and an open tomb left priests and soldiers unchanged. Evidence alone cannot soften a heart that will not repent.
And they took the money and did as they had been taught. And this report is current among the Jews until this day.
One writer asks who stood behind the governor, and follows their money.
The governor held the power of the Roman kingdom. But who secretly pushed him to act? The false religionists of their day — the priests, utterly blinded by the devil. They were never straightforward in heart. They met with the elders and made their plan. The men who bribed a treacherous disciple with "thirty pieces of silver" to put Christ to death now gave "large money" to deny the truth of His resurrection.
Nobody pays that much for the truth.
And further, would anyone give the guard "large money" to speak the truth? Did not the size of the bribe show how afraid the chief priests were? They feared that the truth would come out at last, and that the lies they told would put them in real danger.
They bring their report, and this was nothing less than a witness to the resurrection and to the empty tomb. The enemies were the first witnesses of His triumph. They quickly called the whole ruling council together to hear the report officially. The soldiers spoke plainly, as trained military men do, and no one could doubt they told the truth.
The invented story does not survive a few simple questions.
A true story will hang together and can be examined closely. But this tale is far from convincing. If ALL the guard were asleep, how could they know that the disciples had stolen the body? If the body was stolen, how could sleeping men know what had become of it? Was ALL the guard likely to be asleep on the morning of the third day? Our Lord had prophesied that He would rise from the dead. And they knew that sleeping at their posts risked the death penalty.
There was also a far simpler way to end the matter, and the priests never took it.
And if the disciples had taken the body away, why did the chief priests settle for bribing the soldiers to tell a lie that put them at great risk? Why did they not search for the body by every possible means? Suppose they had found it and shown it to the public. What proof that would have been that our Lord had not risen! That would have settled the matter once and for all. Where was the body? The body was never produced. Why? Because there was no dead body, but a living risen Christ.
If the story was so weak, its spread says more about the hearers than about the evidence.
The guards forget their earlier fear of the angel. Greed for money moves them to tell a bold lie. So up to the day Matthew wrote, people commonly accepted this falsehood. Yet any honest person could certainly have seen through this whole fabrication of lies. Still, if a man likes a lie he will gladly accept it without question.
Behind the choice to lie stands a refusal that costs more than money. One writer sums up the council's whole reaction in a sentence.
The unhappy Jews seek to hide their confusion, without humbling themselves, without repenting. By bribes they persuade the soldiers to spread the report — even at the risk of falling under the severity of Roman discipline — that the disciples had taken away His body while they slept.
Matthew's closing phrase marks a hostility that ran on through the generations.
There is more to say about this hostility of Israel. Here in the twenty-eighth chapter we read that the priests and the soldiers agreed on one lie: that the disciples came and stole away the body of Jesus while the guard were asleep. It is commonly reported to this day. That is a fair sign of the old hostility, carried on through all the generations of the nation, to this day.
These same priests had stooped to a large bribe for the soldiers set to watch the grave. They had also promised an even more expensive bribe for the Governor, if it were needed, to twist their witness to His resurrection. Yet it is clear that when only a few months had passed, the lie they had launched had proved too fragile to rely on. They dared not take their stand upon it.
- Paid. The council paid thirty pieces of silver for His death. It paid "large money" to deny His rising. Same hands, same currency, a bigger price.
- Proved. The guards had already reported the truth, so a bribe was needed. His enemies were the first witnesses of His triumph.
- Punctured. Sleeping men cannot report what happened while they slept. And the priests never produced the body, the one thing that would have ended it.
- Preferred. The story spread because people wanted it, not because it was believable. If a man likes a lie he will accept it without question.
- Perishable. The lie travelled "to this day" as a mark of settled hostility. Yet within months it was too fragile to stand on, and its own authors fell silent.